Kill-Switch
by Andrew A. Anderson
Summary: "Every agent is given a kill-switch that is connected to the system. If you disobey orders, they flip the switch. If you do something you're not supposed to, they flip the switch. If they find out you tried to remove your kill-switch, they flip the switch. Those are the rules. Welcome to the program." Part 1 of the "Kill" series. AU.


...

I present to you yet another Code Geass story! This will be the first part in a series. I don't know how many more there will be, as that all depends on where I would like the plot to go. This is AU, but Code and Geass powers still exist. Without further fluffy note-nonsense, I give you Kill-Switch!

...

Chapter 1

...

_January 3, 2023_

_"2022 was the year he went missing. For a reason unknown to me, I always felt he was out there somewhere, trying to come back. They never found his body, and I clung to this fact. Every morning, I go to the computer and start my trace program, desperately searching for some sign he is alive. Every evening, I come back to my computer, dejected at the results. It's becoming borderline obsessive and I really need to stop."_

_January 11, 2023_

_"It's the same dream, over and over. He's standing in the doorway, just smiling at me. Whenever I try to respond, he simply vanishes. Then, I wake up."_

_January 13, 2023_

_"I found one of his jackets the other day. It was under my bed for some odd reason. I can't look at it, though. It reminds me of him too much, almost as if he is actually there, wearing the jacket."_

_January 14, 2023_

_"His memory haunts me. He was the only one who had ever affected my life in such a way. I had to throw away the jacket I found, otherwise I would probably go insane if I looked at it again. The dreams are becoming more vivid, almost real. Is it a sign? It can't be. As much as I wish it isn't true, I have to face the harsh reality that Lelouch is gone."_

...

Five years earlier - 2018

"Mr. Lamperouge, that is the second time you have fallen asleep in class today!"

His eyes shot open. "Wha...oh! I'm so sorry, ma'am."

"You ought to be! How do you expect to graduate if you fall asleep in class and miss an hour's worth of lecture every day?"

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again."

"Now is not the time for naps, Mr. Lamperouge. There's plenty of time to sleep when you're dead!"

The bell rang and students scattered from the evening class. Lelouch slowly gathered his books and shoved them into his bag which he then slung over one shoulder. He and Suzaku headed to the cafeteria for the evening meal.

"You really should stop sleeping in class, Lelouch."

"Why does she have to make such a big deal out of it? I'm still the top of the class, even when I do sleep."

Suzaku shrugged. "Maybe it's your attitude. Maybe she thinks you're arrogant."

"It's not arrogance if it's true...I really am the smartest one in the class..."

Suzaku simply shook his head, realizing there was a certain amount of truth to his friend's statement.

A buzzing from his phone caused Suzaku to pause mid-stride.

"Who's that? Your girlfriend?"

He chuckled nervously. "No, that was my military issued phone. I'm being called for patrol duty."

"At this hour?"

"Yeah, well it is my shift in half an hour."

"Well I guess I'll see you later. I'm going to take a walk."

"Alright...I'll see you tomorrow."

The friends parted ways as Suzaku walked to the dorms to suit up and Lelouch started for the Ashford Academy gate. A full moon hung in the skies that night, and there was not a cloud in sight to obstruct it. The archway gleamed a heavenly white in the moonlight as Lelouch walked through, stepping off school campus into the city.

For this early in the evening, there sure were a lot of cars buzzing up and down the streets. Lelouch looked through the windows of all the shops he passed by. A line went out the door of a nearby shop. He took a closer look at the blue and red neon sign that blared _Open_.

"Pizza Hut...why would there be such a long line for such a disgusting place..."

He never did like pizza. As far back as he could remember, pizza didn't like him either. The last time he had a slice, he spent an hour in the restroom as it went back up his system. Not a very pleasant time in his life.

A girl sat in the window of the Pizza Hut, with an unholy number of pizza boxes stacked on her table. Her lime-green hair shone in the moonlight as she stared out the window with a rather attractive complexion. Attractive? Wait just a minute, Lelouch didn't think she was _that_ attractive. Then again...

"How does she stay so thin while eating all that pizza?"

Suddenly, he realized he was staring. He shook his head and moved on.

Sensing a stranger staring at her, the girl turned to see who it was. Lelouch continued walking down the sidewalk. She thought aloud to herself through a mouthful of pizza.

"He's cute."

Lelouch continued down the road, taking in the sights of the various shops and stores that reflected the night sky. He finally reached the end of the street, where the stores ended and the residential buildings began.

...

C.C. watched as a man with silvery-blue hair walked down the sidewalk. She followed closely behind but kept her distance as to not arouse suspicion.

The man stood against a building at the corner of the street, waiting for the crossing sign to light up. He looked at the ground and tapped his feet idly, one of his hands in his pockets, the other grasping a digital voice recorder. He wore sunglasses that wrapped around his eyes in a single transparent band. His headphones were clasped tightly over his ears. Though the area was deserted, the headphones blocked out the remaining sound of the world and replaced it with something more soothing.

Suddenly, a vise-like grip on his shoulder spun him around. First he was shocked, then happily surprised.

"Why hello, C.C.! It's so good to see you! Did you miss me? I certainly missed you!"

The man reached into his white trench coat and suddenly his toothy grin faded. It was C.C.'s turn to smirk as she held up a pistol which she dangled by its barrel. His jaw hit the floor and his eyes grew behind his oversized sunglasses.

"Looking for something?" She smiled evilly.

"You...why, C.C.? I loved you! I know you loved me t-"

The boy was silenced as the pistol ejected a round straight into his forehead. He slowly slid down against the wall, painting a bloody red trail against it. C.C. knelt down and pressed her fingers against the junction between the boy's chin and neck. Feeling nothing, she stood up.

It was then that Lelouch heard gunshots. Though they sounded silenced, there was still that unmistakable mechanical sound of a pistol spitting out a bullet. A metallic clinking of a shell falling onto the floor confirmed his suspicions. Someone was shooting.

Lelouch slowly walked to the area he had heard the shooting come from. His search brought him to a street corner, littered with garbage and graffiti. A pool of dark red surrounded a lifeless body. Alarmed, he sprinted over to the corpse that was slumped against a wall. A sickening river of blood stood out against the wall, despite the redness of the bricks that composed it.

The headphones the man wore were askew and Lelouch could faintly hear what the man was listening to. It was the voice of a girl, though she was not a singer or a book narrator. The short phrases she spoke were random and had nothing to do with each other, yet he could barely hear the name of one person being repeated. He took his fingers and held up the man's wrist, but no pulse came.

He jumped in surprise as the barrel of a gun clicked to the back of his head.

"Stand up. Very slowly."

Lelouch had no choice but to slowly get to his feet. The cold metal prodding the back of his skull was a reminder that his life could very well end right there.

"What were you doing here?"

"I...I heard gunshots and I decided to-"

"Gunshots?" Apparently that was the wrong answer, as she cocked the hammer on the gun, still nudging his head.

"C.C., what is going on?" A voice in her earpiece crackled.

"There's a boy here who may have witnessed the assassination."

"Don't shoot him yet. Get his name so that we know who we're dealing with. Then kill him, and we'll write him out of history."

"What's your name?"

"Lelouch Lamperouge. I'm just a stu-"

The barrel pointed at his head fell. He turned around cautiously, wondering why she had lowered her weapon. To his surprise, it was the same girl he saw in the window of the Pizza Hut. It was probably not a good idea to tell her of how he loathed pizza.

"This might make you feel sick." She placed a cold hand on his neck and with a spasm of pain, he fell unconscious.

...

Lelouch slowly opened his eyes and realized he was in a dark warehouse. The building was run down and the ceiling was gaping with holes. Stacks of rusted sheet metal lay against a nearby wall, where rats ran along the floor. He tried to get up but realized he was tied to a chair.

"Where am I? What have you done to me?"

"Don't you recognize the stench of Shinjuku?" She grinned smugly.

"Shinjuku? I'm in the ghettos?"

"I didn't say the royal palace, did I?" He could almost hear the smirk in her voice.

"Who are you?" His head quickly turned from side to side, searching the darkness for his captor.

"Doesn't matter." The voice seemed to echo from all sides of the room, making it nearly impossible for Lelouch to determine where the girl was.

A figure stepped out from the shadows. Only her face was visible, but he already knew who it was. The same pistol appeared in her hand.

"You said you are Lelouch Lamperouge, correct?"

Lelouch stared at her grimly. "I'm not telling you anything. Now let me go!"

She extended her arm and pointed at Lelouch's foot with her pistol. With a loud explosion, the front-left chair leg was shortened by a factor of 2 inches. He yelped as the chair pitched forward and jerked to a stop.

He screamed in rage. "Are you crazy?"

Another bang resulted in an inch taken off of the front-right leg.

"I'm not talking!"

Another off the left.

Lelouch realized his resistance was getting him nowhere. This green-haired maniac didn't look like she was going to stop shooting the legs off of his chair. She raised the silenced pistol and pointed at his head.

"Lelouch! That's my name! Now stop shooting at me!"

"Last name?"

Lelouch opened his mouth to speak but he couldn't make up his mind whether to tell her or not, let alone find the words to formulate into a coherent sentence. He could only pull at the ropes that held him and pray that this wasn't the end of his life.

The low grumble of a jeep could be heard in the silence of night. Feet crunched on the gravel underneath them. A few shouts here and there getting closer.

"Lamperouge." He finally gave in. The girl's eyes widened in surprise and she cursed to herself.

"Are you a student at Ashford Academy?"

"What would it matter to you? You're going to kill me anyway."

In a blur of motion, the girl whirled around and planted her heel into the seat of the chair, flipping it over on its back.

"Ugh!" Lelouch grunted as his head whipped back against the ground. He was still stuck to the chair and couldn't get up from his current position. He lay on his side, glaring up at the girl who approached him.

Screams of terror could be heard amidst the clatter of automatic gunfire. A nearby building was suddenly halved as an artillery shell cleaved the outer wall in two. Loose bricks fell from the top of the buildings, among people and bullet casings. Britannian soldiers moved about through the chaos, systematically eliminating any non-military personnel they found in their path.

"Yes, I'm from Ashford. Now you better start answering some of my questions!"

C.C. walked over to where Lelouch was held and began undoing the bonds that stayed him. His facial expression was that of confusion as the girl's fingers deftly untied the knots. She looked over her shoulder and hurried.

"Come on, there's not much time. They're going to kill you once they see you."

"Why?"

"That doesn't matter either."

"I guess you didn't count on the military sweeping through here, huh."

She shot him a glare that froze him in his seat as effectively as the ropes that once held him.

"I'm only keeping you alive because your death would be quite problematic for me."

She grasped his arm and pulled him upwards with surprising strength. Lelouch dusted his school uniform jacket off as he backed away warily.

"Who the hell _are_ you?"

The breath was knocked out of him as a knee rose to greet his stomach. He doubled over but was prevented from falling by the girl's arm. A pressure engulfed the sides of his neck and he realized he was in a choke hold. The same pistol poked into the back of his neck.

"Move. Now!" A voice hissed into his ear.

"Hey, there's more people in here too! One of them has a gun!" A Britannian soldier stood at the large entrance of the warehouse and motioned for more people to come over.

"Dammit, I told you to move!" She hissed again.

A small company of soldiers raised their rifles and aimed at the crazed girl and her hostage.

"Shall we continue with the extermination?"

"Those were our orders. Fire!"

"Get down!" C.C. shoved Lelouch out of the path of the speeding bullets and behind a pile of rubble. He landed with a grunt as C.C. began firing back at the soldiers. She had only managed to squeeze off two rounds before she was forced to dive behind the same cover Lelouch hid under. She sat up again, getting up behind the cover in order to fire a few more bullets. The gunfire from her pistol stopped.

She fell to the floor and landed on top of Lelouch, knocking him back down in his attempts to sit back up. The soldiers slowly walked forward, weapons still raised.

"Gah!"

Lelouch looked down in his lap and realized a bullet had landed in the middle of the girl's forehead, a small trickle of blood making its way down her cheek. The sound of gunfire still echoed about the room and he continued to slink down under the rubble. A hand snaked out and latched itself onto Lelouch's wrist, and suddenly all went white.

"You don't want this to be the end, do you?"

"That's the girl...impossible! Where am I?"

"You are nowhere."

"Who are you? What's happening to me?"

"If I gave you power to live on, what would you do with it? Would you use it for good or evil?"

"I would use this power...to change the world!"

"A fitting cause for a fitting power. I propose a contract. In exchange for this power, you will live in isolation, as an exile from your former life. You will work alongside me and others like yourself to better the world. We will become accomplices. Once taken, this contract cannot be reversed. Only in death are you released from its terms."

"I hereby accept the terms of your contract!"

His vision spun back into focus and he was back in the warehouse, staring down a group of Britannian soldiers.

"What's wrong? Afraid to shoot? Or have you finally realized, the only ones who should kill are those prepared to be killed!"

"What sort of double-talking nonsense is this?"

"I, Lelouch Lamperouge, command you, all of you, _die_."

The Geass crane manifested in Lelouch's left eye spread its wings and took flight, soaring into the minds of the soldiers. The soldiers wild confusion slowly morphed into perfect understanding, then absolute obedience.

"Heh heh...yes, your majesty!"

To his horror, all of the soldiers swung up their rifles with far too much enthusiasm, pointing the barrels at their necks. Some drew knives on each other, while those without rifles drew pistols. In a massive destruction of flesh and blood, the small company dropped lifeless to the floor.

"You learn quickly. I'm surprised. I thought I would have had to save your life again."

Lelouch spun around to face the formerly dead girl. A small trail of blood still blemished her otherwise-flawless complexion. His eyes widened in surprise.

"Your power is quite devastating. I haven't known many people who could use their powers to the same effect."

"You were dead...Who are you? And what are you? And where exactly do you come from?"

The girl simply stared at him, her head slightly cocked to one side.

"You certainly ask a lot of questions."

"I tend to do that when I see people who get shot in the head stand up after a few minutes."

"Fair enough. My name is C.C."

"C.C.? What kind of name is that?"

"It is the name of a past long since forgotten."

"Obscure response for an obscure person. I expected as much." Lelouch shrugged. "Still, I think you're hiding something from me..."

He grabbed her shoulder and spun her around, gazing deep into her eyes.

He shouted in the most menacing voice he could manage, which was really not all that menacing. "I, Lelouch Lamperouge, order you to tell-"

Her eyebrow shot straight up. Lelouch stopped mid-command.

"I hope you realize that your power doesn't work on me."

"How is that possible?"

"Lelouch, you don't give someone a sword without first giving yourself a shield."

"I see."

"The name of the power I gave you is Geass. It manifests differently in each person. You have to take up a contract with someone like me if you want to gain this power."

"Then why doesn't everyone try to gain this power?"

"I come from a very secretive organization. If word spread of this Geass power, everyone would be searching for a handler like me. We do quite a good job of making sure no one finds out about us."

"Who was that you just killed?"

She took a deep breath. "He was my former contractee."

"Why did you have to kill him?"

"Part of the job."

"What job?"

"The job you now have. You will be his replacement now."

"Are you saying I have to kill in this job?"

She bent down and scooped up her pistol, ejecting the magazine and inspecting it. "You'll get used to it."

"You mean I'll become desensitized? I didn't sign up for killing people! I only wanted to better the world!"

The girl blinked at him. "What of the Britannian soldiers you just killed? They were people too."

"I didn't say I was used to it..." He growled.

"You accepted the contract. Your life but my purpose. Released only in death."

He groaned. "Wonderful. Sounds like marriage."

"Thinking ahead, are we?"

"What, no! I was just-"

"I'm not available." She tossed her hair over her shoulder as she walked toward the back exit of the warehouse.

"I didn't ask." He muttered. This was going to be a long night...

...

"Early November of last year, we realized there was a mole in our system. Our enemies were always one step ahead of us, which is nearly impossible to achieve. We tracked down the mole and it turns out he was my contractee."

"So you gave him Geass too?"

"I did. I also was forced to kill him."

"He was your student. That sounds tragic."

"Not really. He turned into a traitor and I thought I taught him better than that. I had to clean up after my mistake."

"What happens if I fail? Will you kill me too?"

"I won't. They might."

The dark sedan rolled down the highway at a dangerously fast speed for this late at night. The roads seemed more empty than they usually did. Lighting was poor and the road was barely illuminated by the glow of the moon.

"Who's they?"

"You'll see soon enough."

"Are you with the government?"

"Perhaps."

Lelouch's stomach audibly grumbled. He looked down, slightly embarrassed.

"Sorry, I haven't eaten yet."

"Really? I'll take this next exit. We'll stop for pizza."

"...pizza...?" There was a hint of discontent in his tone.

"Don't like pizza?"

"Not exactly."

"Too bad, I'm hungry. We're going anyway."

"Again? You just had pizza earlier tonight!"

Lelouch realized his mistake as soon as the words had tumbled out of his mouth. His statement let her know he was the one staring at her. The temperature in the car rose a few degrees, despite the cool night air on the outside. C.C.'s gaze was directed straight ahead on the road.

"So you were the one staring at me."

"Uh..."

"You're blushing, Lelouch."

"No, I'm not. It's just-"

"Your face is making the pepperoni look pale."

C.C. flicked the turning signal on as she drove off the exit. Proudly standing 30 feet tall in the air was a large Pizza Hut logo with an arrow pointing to its base. Lelouch took a deep breath and rolled his eyes, bracing for whatever other strange or unexpected events came his way.

...

"Number nine? Number nine?"

C.C. jabbed Lelouch, who was falling asleep on the opposite inside seat of the booth. He jumped awake as he was shoved off the cushion and pushed forward to the counter where he picked up a rather large shipment of pizzas.

They sat back down, the exaggerated pile of boxes in between them. C.C. wasted no time in tearing open the first box and cutting herself a slice. Lelouch had his head in his hands, grumbling to himself. She looked at him quizzically.

"Why, oh why, did I let myself be dragged here."

"Because you were hungry?" The girl offered.

"That was rhetorical." He groaned again."What am I doing here? I'm a student, not a hired gun!"

"You don't have to use a gun, if it's not your style. I once knew this person who liked to hang people by-"

"Shut it!" His nose crinkled in disgust.

"Anyway, he was rather a disturbed fellow. Do you think you will ever become that disturbed?"

"I might, if I have to put up with you any longer."

"That was rhetorical too."

"Do you always order this many pizzas in one sitting?"

She shrugged. "Usually more."

Lelouch shook his head and folded his arms on the table.

"Is there a problem, Lelouch?"

"No. No problem at all."

She continued munching on her pizza while he idly sipped on his water. She was so strange, he thought. They had ordered 7 boxes of pizza (3 for eating now, 3 saved for later, and 1 more just to earn a Cheese-kun limited-edition promotional reward, as she had told him). The said Cheese-kun plushie sat at the table staring at Lelouch and he stared back, determined not to give in.

"Mr. Cheese-kun doesn't like it when people stare at him." She finally broke the silence, but her attempt only made the ensuing silence worse.

Lelouch sighed. "I admit I was staring at you, but only because it just surprised me that you can eat all of...that..." He gestured to the stack of cardboard in front of him. "...and still look like...that." He pointed to her.

"Are you saying my figure is shapely? I'm flattered." She crunched through another slice.

"What? No! I meant you had high metabolism."

"That could be it."

"Is that one of your abilities?"

She smirked. "I wouldn't call it an ability, but it certainly is an added benefit."

"Huh."

A short period of silence passed between them.

"How old are you?"

She looked up at Lelouch, cheese, pepperoni, and a double serving of olives hanging out of her mouth. "It's rude to ask a woman her age."

"It's also rude to talk with your mouth full. You can't possibly be older than 18 so I hardly think 'woman' applies to you."

"On official record, I'm 16."

"A government assassin at 16? Mustn't have had much of a childhood. What do you mean by official record?"

"I don't remember how old I actually am."

"You can't remember your real name and you can't remember your real age? Who are you?"

"I told you. My name is C.C."

"But who are you really?"

She sighed the sigh of a bored little girl. "Why are you so interested with my life? Don't you want to know where I'm taking you?"

"O-of course I do." He stammered. "I would just like to know who my handler is, that's all."

"Seems reasonable."

"Your Geass power, what is it exactly?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean, you got shot and stood up within a few minutes."

"That's not Geass."

"What is it?"

She looked out the window and sighed. "A side-effect of a curse."

"Curse? It sounds more like a gift to me."

"I'd rather not explain the details. I barely know you. All you need to remember is that you're not the one who can heal yourself. I am. Which means you have to keep your head screwed on tight when we're out in the field, got it?"

Lelouch's eyes lit up as an idea sprung to mind. "You're immortal."

Her eyebrows raised at this curious accusation. "Don't be silly."

"Is that why you don't remember your name or age? You've lived too long to remember? Or you simply don't care."

She sighed, realizing her secret was known. "You're quite the thinker, aren't you?"

He shrugged. "I've been told that before."

She reached her hand into the tower of pizza boxes stacked on the table. "I possess something called a Code. It is a curse that makes me immortal. Don't ask me how I got it."

"You weren't born with it then?"

"No. On the contrary, I received it when I was around 16. The curse prevented me from aging. That's why on official record, I'm 16."

"Perpetual youth? A lot of people out there would kill for that."

"A lot of people have." She noted solemnly.

"Why is it a curse?"

"Because your life loses its meaning. Death brings meaning to life, because without death, how can you be alive?"

"Interesting concept. Why did you become an assassin? You've lived so long. You must know what makes people the happiest. I hardly think that being a gun for the government is what most people would consider a passion."

"Maybe I'll tell you later if you live long enough."

He laughed softly. "I think I can manage that."

She looked up at him. "Don't be so sure. You were scheduled for termination in three days. You wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Termination...me? But why? Why did you save me?"

"I didn't say that _we_ scheduled your termination. The enemy did. I only gave you a contract because I needed a new contractee and it would be easier to protect you that way."

"'The enemy of my enemy is my friend?'"

"More specifically, 'the target of my enemy is my friend.'"

"Well...thank you."

"Don't thank me yet." She pointed to the stack of boxes. "Eat something. It's going on your credit card anyway."

"What?!"

...


End file.
